I don’t understand how anybody can bear to intentionally plagiarise anyone else's work because today I sort of (inadvertently) took credit for what someone else had done and it made me feel completely sick. It was a matter of a story that should have had a triple byline but instead just had one (ie: MINE) and it was one part a cock up on my part and one part someone else’s but I felt truly wretched and guilty, as though I had run about and done it on purpose.
So I just don’t see how people can do this kind of thing intentionally, or perhaps repeatedly through laziness, and not feel terrible. Because people do. A surprising amount. Ripping crap off press releases, or off the wires, and putting your name on it does get done and it’s embarassing to see and painful for those who have their stuff ripped off. Maybe the people who do it do feel bad about it, as I do, but... eh, I don't know. Personally I’ve learned my lesson (proof EVERYTHING and if in doubt proof again) but to would be plagiarises out there: gah, just say no, kids.
1 comment:
Down in my part of the world we have all too often seen Industry Spin Doctors writing their own stories for some of the local media.
Surely sitting at a desk publishing spin from a media release cannot be true journalism?
Sadly Investigative Journalism appears to be a thing of the past.
Steve
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